My Buster Brown's laugh

NOTE: Unlike my wife who is not only economic with her finances but also her words, I tend to be a bit long winded in my writing, so if you’re bored already just click play on the videos and you’ll get the basic idea.

Hi all, this is Nate. Yes I do of course realize that I have never posted in the past; nor do I have any intention of making a consistent contribution to the prestigious blog known as Checketts in the Fast Lane; but I am long overdue-almost 9 months-to give the one and only post I intend to make.

I have gone through the lengthy process of approving this message with the blog’s editor and with her generosity and permission here I go:

Mr. Gabriel... It's difficult to know where to begin. Perhaps to start I will tell you there has never been a father so in love as I am with my little boy. He is a dream come true a thousand times over and has been even before his birth.

I certainly cannot speak for all husbands / dads but from the moment I saw that pregnancy indicative plus sign to the first ultrasound, I wanted a baby boy more than I had ever wanted anything else. I was no switzerland to the oft-asked question of "Do you want a boy or a girl?” The answer was always “I want a boy,” and that was it. I soon learned of course why everyone gives a neutral answer to that question when I heard “Oh you’ve jinxed yourself--you're going to have 4 girls.”

As Dayna and I went in for the ultrasound I was so nervous I could barely speak or hold any decent conversation. I shyly handed the nurse my dvd to record the session--I had stuck it in my briefcase the day before so I wouldn’t forget it. Then I promptly and obediently went to my designated sitting area. I sat there intently watching the screen, repeating my nervous habit routine of finger fidget, cell phone check, and leg bouncing, etc. I couldn’t stand the anticipation--I wanted to tell the nurse "Throw that gel on and let's get an image already!" But I sat and waited until there it was--that white and black bouncing image--the next stage of our family. The nurse expertly maneuvered around until the image was in the “perfect spot,” (I could still only see a mess of white that wouldn’t sit still). But then as if on cue, she asked “did you want to find out baby’s gender today?” “Of course” I practically cried pre-empting Dayna. She looked up smiled, paused, and then gently said “You've got a baby boy.” I jumped from my chair, fist pump in motion, and screamed “YES!” “I knew it! I knew it!” Looking up in my excitement through the cracked door I could see a nurse and several passers by look in to see who had missed the insanity wing of the hospital. But I didn’t care, I was on cloud nine looking at my baby boy, or as I have called him since “my buster brown.”

The 9 months passed much quicker for me then they did for Dayna--in fact I almost feel like its insult to devote so little blog space to trimesters of morning sickness, discomfort, and more sugar candy's than previously thought possible. But it did pass and then came a long and intense labor and again Dayna moved higher on a pedestal I could never dream of touching. And then came the beautiful, ever moving, buster brown. He had a head full of dark curly hair on his coned head and slitted blue eyes that opened almost immediately. He quickly showed the hospital just how good his lungs were when I started to play “claire de lune” on my ipod speaker for him. It was the song we had played almost nightly to him in the womb. Almost instantly he turned towards the music, calmed right down, and looked up at me as if to say “here I am dad--I made it.”

It’s hard to explain, in fact I have tried on a number of occasions and failed, but before Gabe came I almost felt like his birth would be a reunion of sorts. Certainly in our mortal existence we had never been together, but it didn’t feel like an introduction to me--rather it was that coming together after a period of separation, a reuniting of souls that had been apart for some time. Me and my buster brown together at last.

And then from birth to almost every doctor’s appointment thereafter we always heard the same refrain “Wow, he sure is a mover.” In fact his first pediatrician even said “I’ve never seen a baby move so much.” That was a pediatrician for pete sake, and not one fresh out of med school either.

Now 8 months have come and past so quickly. As you’ve seen from the blog posts, he is growing quickly, learning new “tricks” as we call them, and making us laugh daily. The one constant is still of course “Wow, this kid never stops moving.” My mother of 6 told me while feeding him a bottle and watching his leg bounce up and down non-stop “Nathaniel, I’ve never seen a baby still kick so much while eating.” He even moves when he sleeps, sometimes even violently. My sister Katie, who should have a PhD in swaddling children couldn’t even keep him contained in her “kung fu swaddle.” He just loves to move.

His other favorite activity is laughing. I am certainly biased but when this boy smiles he has a face that could launch a thousand ships (as was said of Helen of Troy). And in fact my assignment for this post from the esteemed editor is in fact showing a few videos of this little giggle. Here are a few I captured with my phone which is the reason for the poor quality.


These first two videos ar e from our recent trip to Washington D.C. Gabe was obviously a bit crazy from the long flights and little sleep. As you can see he especially loved the baggage claim.

Dayna found this little St. Louis blues remote control Zamboni (machine that smoothes the ice between hockey periods--for you non ice skating / hockey fans). Gabezilla loved trying to catch it. Oh, and for the record that's Dayna driving.

And finally this kid loves dogs. This was an area where they were selling puppies. Gabe got so excited he stuck his pudgy ankles through the bars and got them stuck. He was still laughing as the puppies came to lick and chew on his toes. NOTE: he does not have the same reaction with cats (my shameless positioning to avoid felines and get a good american dog)

That’s really it. I love this kid.

There are more videos but those will have to wait for another late night post or a more likely one from Dayna.

-Nate